like cardiac arrest, high voltage in her lips
by colsamcarter
Summary: "Well then, Tinkerbell." He walked forward a little awkwardly on his knees, trying not to let his nervousness show as his joints protested in a way he hoped was not audible. He winked at her, trying to distract himself from the fact that the last time he had done something like this had been over a decade ago.
1. Chapter 1

**My apologies for any mistakes, I procrastinated writing this fic quite a bit and so didn't have time to get a beta before I had to post it. If you spot one and are so inclined, pointing it out in a comment would be lovely :)**

**This fic is kind of an AU, not just in the sense that this is Sam and Jack's first meeting in this verse, but also in the sense that most of the characters have rather been shoved into slightly more mundane day jobs than usual. Technically, this was meant to be a Halloween AU (****"we wore matching halloween costumes to this party" au"****, although it turned out a little light on the actual Halloween aspect.**

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><p>one<p>

"I know I tell you this every year, Daniel - but way more people would understand your costume if you went as Indiana Jones." Jack called from the bathroom as he adjusted the belt around his waist. Predictably, his statement was followed by a vague "harrumph" noise from the entryway. It wasn't hard to get Daniel riled up and it was downright amusing watching - or hearing him - frown in consternation.

"Like I tell you every year for Halloween, and every time you try and make an Indiana Jones joke at my expense, Jack - Indiana Jones was a _terrible_ archaeologist. He has little respect for the cultures of the people whose artefacts he was examining, and he constantly destroys sacred temples and burial grounds to obtain his objects of study. An archaeologist has a duty to _preserve_. Indiana Jones is nothing more than a glorified bull driver."

"Bull driver?" Jack inquired, sticking his head around the open bathroom door. Daniel stopped and looked for him for a moment.

"He had a whip." It came out as a mutter, accompanied by a vague hand gesture. Jack suspected that Daniel's unwillingness to engage with what had to be the most famous fictional archaeologist there was may have had something to with the fact that it was the first thing people had to say every time he mentioned his profession, and the fact that he was tired of having to explain that his job was much more sedentary than that, and then having to witness people rapidly lose interest when he offered to talk about his actual work. Jack squinted slightly.

"And just what are you supposed to be?" Daniel had put some kind of product in his hair to make it all fluffy and frizzy, and he'd put what looked like baby powder in parts of his hair to make him look greying. His eyebrows looked far bushier than usual and he was also sporting a comically wild moustache and beard combo. For his actual costume, he was wearing quite an unusual looking neck scarf tied into a bow over a white dress shirt and an almost tweed-like blazer.

"I can't just tell you, you're supposed to guess!" Bemoaned Daniel. He was busy adjusting his eyebrows, which seemed to be stuck on.

"Daniel, the day I understand your costume is the day I understand even a quarter of what you talk about on a daily basis." Having adjusted the triangle pieces at the hem of his shirt to his satisfaction, Jack grabbed his keys and wallet from the counter and stuffed them into the small satchel bag at his hip. "Are you ready to go now... old guy?" Daniel retrieved an old looking book from his hall side table, then headed towards the door.

"At least I'm not wearing the same Halloween costume as last year." He grouched. Daniel figured that since Jack would at least have time to buy a new costume since he retired from the Air Force and was no longer working long hours on bases or at the Academy. Then again, since Jack spent most of his time working on his boat at the docks, that probably didn't leave much time to visit costume stores – and Jack could be such a grump sometimes that he probably wouldn't want to be seen dead at one of those stores.

"Hey! The whole point of Peter Pan is that he never grows up!"

* * *

><p>Pulling up the block to Janet's house, Jack was unsurprised to see she'd gone all out again. Janet's holiday parties were legendary for many reasons, one of them being her house always looks like there's a few party stores in Colorado that got good business that week. Tonight was no different, and from the end of the road the jack-o-lanterns are lining the path to her porch are visible. It looks like the lights are off in the house but there's a glow from inside, and he can definitely see movement through the windows as he pulls up outside. There's still a space left to park and he skilfully manoeuvres his jeep between Janet's Honda and a tiny little Beetle. Trotting up the drive to her porch, he re-adjusted his cap on his head, giving the feather a little tap to make sure it was still in place. Daniel jogged up behind him, stroking his fingers through his beard and gently pressing his eyebrows against his face. Coming to a stop in front of the door, Jack cocked his head and scrutinises the skeleton hanging from the knocker before turning to Daniel.<p>

"You gonna tell me what the hell you're supposed to be before we go in?" Jack reached out to press the doorbell.

"Of course not. The whole point is that you're supposed to guess." He sounded exasperated. Jack thought he knew how he felt.

"Well you'll have to give me a clue! All I can tell is that you're really old. Are you a politician?" He was sure all the pictures of the founding fathers and old presidents he'd seen had them with similar beards and eclectic formalwear.

"Nope." Daniel shook his head.

"Scientist?" Jack heard the scampering of excited feet behind the door.

"Guess ag-" The door was flung open to reveal Janet in her Halloween costume. She had gone the cute route this year it seemed. Last year she'd been a zombie, her makeup giving her the pallor of dead flesh and contacts making her eyes look bloodshot. This year she was in a little pair of black shorts and black tee, her cheeks streaked with drawn on whiskers and a pair of felt cat ears perched atop her head.

"Hey, guys! You get here alright?"

"Yeah. People tend to just be on foot tonight, I guess. You can't exactly drive through to collect candy, I suppose."

"Hah! You wish." Jack turned to give Daniel the evil eye in response to his outburst.

"Janet. You've met Daniel?" He was sure she had, but the way she was looking at them in amusement would indicate a first time viewer of their antagonism.

"I've met Daniel, yes. At your barbeque last month. This guy, however?" She had a point, Daniel was almost unrecognisable under his costume.

"Ah yes, the great mystery of tonight: just _who is_ Daniel Jackson?" He mocked, and was rewarded by a long sigh.

"If you're not going to get it, at least give other people a chance to enjoy a guess." He smiled at Janet in apology, as if she was otherwise going to have been able to magically know what 300 year old dead guy he was dressed up as. Sometimes Jack wondered if Daniel remembered he was the only one who actually cared about all this useless trivia and historical hoohah.

"Sorry Daniel, I haven't a clue. Why don't you two come inside? Those tights do not look warm, Jack." Even on Halloween, Janet was ever the concerned physician. Jack could tell that in her short glance down at the green leggings he wore she had quickly tried to ascertain whether she favouring one of his legs. He figured it was a doctor's habit, particularly as she was the medical officer assigned to supervise his case when he was in physical therapy.

"One must suffer for eternal youth…" Jack sighed wistfully, stepping over the entryway. The ground floor of her house was scattered with about twenty guests at his estimation. As Fraiser's gatherings went, this was relatively small. She seemed to go for the bigger parties around Christmas and New Year, he remembered.

"Oh, Peter Pan?" Janet seemed to pause after she closed the door behind them.

"Of course."

"Remind me to introduce you to someone later." He met her eyes, and there was definitely a glint. This could not be good. Fraiser outside work was a matchmaking menace.

"Uh… OK." Jack was about to ask what Peter Pan had to do with Janet's friends, when he caught sight of Jonas and T in the living room. Pointing at them to indicate he was going to go over and say hi, he left Janet with Daniel.

* * *

><p>T was listening intently to something Jonas was rambling animatedly about. As Jack got closer, it became abundantly clear that their conversation was entirely informative. He veered sharply to the right, winking at T who just nodded, smiling back. Poor guy. T was always someone who honestly tried to look interested in what people were saying, always listening and nodding along. Unfortunately that only doomed him to have to listen to more of Jonas or Daniel's long monologues about culture and society. If he was going to have to hang out with those two this evening, he needed a drink.<p>

Fraiser had set up a drinks table in the corner of the main room, the contents of her liquor cabinet lined up alongside a salad bowl filled with some festively coloured punch. The punch was a lurid green colour, and he gave it a sniff before deciding that it was just plain old regular punch rather than some medical waste made in some lab.

"If you're worried about the punch, don't be. It's just a fishbowl with food colouring in it." He spun around quickly, nearly knocking over the punchbowl to see-

"Tinkerbell." He blurted out before clamping his mouth shut. Way to go, O'Neill. What a great greeting. His eyes took in her costume, a little strapless green dress with a skirt that flared out a little around her thighs, the edges with torn fabric a little like the hem of his tunic shirt. She had little grey ankle boots on and fairy wings held in place by elastic around her arms, but the first thing he noticed was her face. The bangs of her short, blonde pixie cut fell onto her forehead, just out of the way of bright blue eyes that smiled at him kindly. She had painted on a little glitter around her eyes and cheeks, but her eyes shone in their own right beneath fluttery lashes and carefully shaped eyebrows.

Oh, hell. He was never going to be able to look at Tinkerbell the same way again.

She must have been one of Janet's friends, Jack thought. He'd never met her before at gatherings of base personnel so he figured she worked at the academy hospital. Jack wondered if this was who Janet was going to introduce him to. He had been worried at first given that Janet was much younger than him and anyone she could be planning to introduce to him would therefore also be a few years his junior at least, but now that he'd seen her he figured she had only suggested it after she had noticed that they were wearing matching costumes. Not that she wasn't _stunningly _beautiful – he just thought it was a bit creepy when older guys went out with younger women. Although, she didn't look that young. She was fresh faced and bright, but held herself carefully. Jack put her in her early thirties.

"That's me." She replied, picking up a plastic cup and pouring him a ladleful of punch. "Here. Apple flavour. Want some?"

"Sure, thanks." He took the cup greatfully, taking a sip. It was sour but after he swallowed his mouth was filled with sweetness.

"So, you're…" She gestured to him vaguely.

"Jack." He held out his hand to greet her, and she shook her head and chuckled, taking his hand and shaking it firmly.

"Actually I was just going to ask if you were meant to be Peter Pan, but your name's good too." D'oh. He was 45 years old, he should not be having conversations reminiscent of the first time he ever talked to a girl in high school.

"Oh. Right. Yeah, Peter Pan." He pointed to his cap, checking the feather was still in place. He didn't think he's ever felt more unbelievably lame.

"Well then, this is a coincidence." She reached to pour herself a cup of punch, her nose wrinkling a little when she saw the lurid green up close but she threw some of it back anyway. She winked and then she was off again, heading off into the adjoining living room and striking up a conversation with Janet.

Jack just stayed leaned against the drinks table, trying not to think about whether her mouth would taste of the sour apple, or just as sweet as his.

He didn't see much of her after that, catching up with T for a bit to hear about how his basketball coaching business was going. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Daniel making conversation with Janet and Tinkerbell, who was laughing at something Daniel had said. He smiled a little at the sound of her laugh, a little giggle that she stifled by covering her mouth, and he wished she'd laugh louder.

Shaking his head, he resolutely focused on what T was saying. He felt bad creepily staring at strangers, no matter how cute they may be.


	2. Chapter 2

two

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><p>"We are <em>not <em>playing spin the bottle, Janet." He was way too old for this. Single adult men should not be forced into college drinking games by tiny air force doctors.

"Oh come _on_, Jack. You afraid of a little action?" She had a challenging look in her eye and Jack knew then that he wasn't going to win this argument.

"Oh you know me doctor. I'm not afraid of anything." Truthfully, he was a little worried about anything that involved bottles or circles or kissing strangers. He had thought he was done with this shit when he finished college. Thankfully, Janet picked that moment to pass him another drink – he was going to need to be way drunker than this.

"Hm. Well, good." She gave him a sharp shove and he was forced to plonk himself down on the floor rather than fall flat on his ass. He rearranged his legs so that he was sitting in a more graceful cross-legged position. Janet wasted no time in assembling her other guests, who formed a circle on the living room floor. With a few having left after about an hour (Janet's doctor friends seemed to all have early shifts), there were about twelve people left. Daniel attempted to take a seat a little ways away from the action but was quickly hoisted up by the arms by Janet (the petite doctor was much stronger than she looked), who forced him down to take a place in the circle. Daniel yawned then quickly covered his mouth, shaking his head as if to dispel his sleepiness. Jack looked across the circle. Janet filled the last gap right across from him, sitting down between Jonas and the girl dressed as Tinkerbell he had bumped into earlier. Janet leaned over to whisper something in her ear and she blushed strongly and quickly, red flaming her cheeks and flowering to the surface of her skin all the way down to the neckline of her dress. She elbowed Janet in the ribs and passed her an empty wine bottle. Janet crawled forward to into the middle of the circle.

"Whoever this lands on has to take the first spin." She announced, placing the bottle down and twisting her fingers until the bottle began to spin around while she retreated back to her space. After a few seconds it began to slow down, slowing to a stop. Much to Jack's great amusement, it landed on Daniel.

"Uh… What do I…" He shuffled forwards until he was next to the bottle.

"Just spin it, and whoever it lands on – you have to kiss." Janet explained. Daniel tentatively gave the bottle a little spin, hoping it landed on someone he's never have to speak to again.

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><p>They were about eight rounds in when, after Janet and Tinkerbell had shared a brief, playful kiss, breaking out into giggles when Janet crawled away, she span the bottle only for it to come to a stop pointing straight at him.<p>

"Well then, Tinkerbell." He walked forward a little awkwardly on his knees, trying not to let his nervousness show as his joints protested in a way he hoped was not audible. He winked at her, trying to distract himself from the fact that the last time he had done something like this had been over a decade ago. He was easily the oldest person here and that was kind of embarrassing, especially given the fact that he was pretty sure this girl was a few years younger than Janet, who was already much younger than he.

She had looked a little nervous herself when she had first sat down, but she didn't even blink as she closed the distance between them quickly, pressing her lips to his. Her hand came to rest at his nape, her fingers curling into the fine, soft hair at the top of his spine. His hands fluttered awkwardly at his sides, not entirely sure if or where to put them, especially given that that anywhere he would normally go for was uncovered, pale skin and his hands were sweating. Jack vaguely remembered the rules were to use tongue only if you landed on the same person twice, but Tinkerbell's lips were already parting slightly and his fell open to move with hers. The awkwardness of kissing a stranger began to fade away and he moved closer, for a moment forgetting where he was until he felt her pull away. When a smirking Janet became visible over her shoulder he came back to himself immediately, and Tinkerbell was smiling sheepishly at him so he did the same. Her cheeks flushed again and she laughed a little nervously, looking down for a second, and Jack suddenly really, really wanted to kiss her again. Instead, she slipped back to her seat and Jack just sat for a moment until Janet cleared her throat and he jumped, leaning down to spin the bottle again.

Jack ended up kissing one of Janet's nurse friends. It was really just a peck, Jack finding himself too dazed and distracted to really focus on actually doing anything, and the girl dressed as Wonder Woman seemed to be happy with that. She seemed much more content when her spin landed on Jonas. Apparently they had hit it off earlier in the evening talking about the benefits of fruit in a healthy diet, so it wasn't totally awkward when they shared a brief kiss. However, when it was Jonas's turn to spin the bottle, it landed again on Tinkerbell. Jack surfaced a bit from his daze, watching the two move towards each other. Apparently Janet had introduced them before, and they seemed friendly and familiar with each other. Tinkerbell even grinned at Jonas when she moved towards him, and Jack felt something tighten in his gut. He wasn't jealous.

He just wished he could see Tinkerbell smile like that at him, see the way her eyes crinkled a little bit and the corners of her mouth rose to pull little dimples out of her cheeks. It was dark, but he wondered what she looked like when she smiled in the sun.

They kissed.

OK, so he was a little jealous.

But Tinkerbell didn't put her hand on Jonas's neck. Tinkerbell didn't lean into the kiss the way she had moved towards him. He knew it was petty and none of his business, but he liked that, felt better for that. He definitely did not have any reason or right to be jealous, but he found himself wishing that he did.

She landed on Daniel after that. Jack was torn between amusement about the way Daniel stammered a hello and an annoyance he couldn't quite explain when she gave him a chaste kiss on the lips.

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><p>After sharing an awkward kiss with Janet, Daniel spun the bottle somewhat wearily, then looked a little sheepish when it landed on Jack. He wasn't overly concerned, since Jack had never been one of those types that bought into the whole hyper-masculine bullshit. Still, he expected it to be a bit like kissing Sarah Oliver had been at graduation. He'd known Jack for what seemed like forever, and kissing long-time friends was always awkward. Jack interrupted his internal monologue by moving towards him quickly.<p>

"Oh fer cryin' out loud." He muttered, pulling Daniel towards him for a smacking kiss on the lips with an over the top 'mwah' sound. "Don't be such a baby, Danny boy." He gave him a shove on the shoulder, and Daniel rolled his eyes and shuffled back to his space. Jack spun the bottle, still dwelling on Daniel's hilarious awkwardness such that he didn't even notice when the bottle stopped moving.

The next thing he knew, Tinkerbell was shuffling towards him. She looked a little amused, but also a little a little nervous. He was just confused. "Uh…" he looked down, and the bottle was indeed pointed towards her.

"Remember, second time means tongues!" Janet's voice called out. "I expect at least 20 seconds, minimum." Jack barely had time to catch up to what was going on by the time she had reached him. She was a little flushed, looking up at him from under long lashes and she looked pretty as hell… if hell was pretty. He'd never been, but he felt like he might be getting a little more familiar with the place after this.

She was close. Real close. Close enough that he could see a tiny little smudge of lipstick on the corner of her mouth. He reached out to wipe it off before he even realised what he was doing, and her eyes widened a little.

"Sorry, I-" He started.

"No, it's OK." She took his hand guided it to her hip. She shuffled a little closer so that their knees were touching, and his left hand came up to mirror his right. They both leaned forward.

They connected with a bump, but recovered nicely, falling back into the pattern they'd previously established a few minutes ago. Jack felt one of her hands come to land on his lower back, the other curler into his shoulder. They both leaned into it, and when she smiled her lips parted and his tongue slipped inside her mouth and then she _hummed_ around him and _Christ _he was going to want a lot longer than twenty seconds. Her tongue touched his tentatively and he was so damn distracted he didn't notice her drawing up the material of his shirt until her hand slid up under it, the cool skin of her palm sliding over the warm flesh of his back. The arm that connected to the hand on his shoulder slid over his collarbone and she got closer, her arm wrapping around him as her tongue tangled with his and she let out this little sigh-

Someone coughed and Tinkerbell seemed to come back to herself, their lips disconnecting with an audible 'pop'. Jack reminded himself to hit Daniel later. Janet whistled and Tinkerbell blushed for the third time. Jack stopped himself from looking down her dress given that he was so close and still reeling from the kiss, but he couldn't help himself wondering if that flush just carried on past her neckline, and how far it went. Instead, he noticed how her ears went a little pink and her tongue darted out to lick her lips…

"I need a drink." Jack stood up and shuffled out of the circle quickly, nearly treading on Daniel in his haste to escape the ring of people. He headed straight for the punch bowl, poured himself a cup, then decided that he needed something stronger.


	3. Chapter 3

three

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><p>"Okayyyyyyyy…" Janet said, standing up. "I guess we're finished." People seemed to slink away after that, either oblivious to the tension that had been created by Jack's sudden departure or willing to completely ignore it to have a good time. Sam hopped up a little too quickly and when she moved to leave the living room Janet steered her with a hand at the small of her back towards the kitchen.<p>

"Before you ask, I'm fine. Though your concern is sweet." Sam smiled at her, but there was a little tension sitting in her spine.

"I know you're fine, sweetie. I just want to know what the hell that was." Did she miss something? Did Jack manage to get riled up at Sam in the short time she had seen them talking at the drinks table?

"I don't know! I guess it just made him uncomfortable." She tried not to be personally offended. Some people just didn't like that kind of contact. That was fine with Sam. She just wished he'd told her if there was a problem.

"Oh, honey – he was more than comfortable. " Or at least he had looked that way. Janet was pretty sure that a kiss was not enough to phase the Colonel.

"Look, I'm not bothered about it. I came here to have a good time and I'm going to continue to have one. Sure, it's a little weird and I have no idea what happened, but right now I just want to get a drink and enjoy my night off. Come on."

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><p>Janet was wondering what exactly Sam had meant when she said she wanted to enjoy herself. She wasn't sure if her friend had intended to get drunk on coming here tonight, but if her objective was to have fun, well – it looked like she was currently doing very well. Right now she was talking motorcycles with James, the only male nurse on Janet's staff, who seemed to enjoy her shop talk. She was making big gestures with her hands when she wasn't drinking copious amounts of punch, and soon her speech got a little slurred and James found it hard to decipher which models Sam was referring to. Janet sat down next to Sam when James waved her over, apologising but explaining that he was going for ice cream with his niece in the morning. Janet chuckled, and saw him to the door. When she came back, Sam was gone. Anywhere else and Janet would go look for her, but there was nowhere dangerous for her to go, so she wasn't concerned. Besides, she Sam would rather that she enjoyed herself than spend the evening babysitting her, especially when she didn't need it.<p>

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><p>Sam weaved through Daniel and T, past Jonas and his nurse friend who were sitting on the coach, until she reached the kitchen. She intended to go and pour herself a glass of water, but pulled up short when she saw Jack sitting on the floor with his back to the kitchen counter, facing the sink. His head was resting in the palm of his hand, his elbow balanced on his knee, until he looked up and saw her.<p>

"I came to get some water…" She pointed lamely towards the sink.

"Oh. Um… don't mind me. Sorry." He stood up awkwardly, and neither made a move to either leave or move towards the sink.

"I like your costume. It's cute." He offered.

"Oh." Sam looked down awkwardly, as if she didn't know what her costume looked like and was surprised to see she was wearing it. "Thank you."

"Here, let me –" he pulled open a cupboard (he must be no stranger to Janet's kitchen, Sam thought) and found her a glass, filling it with water from the tap. She took it and sipped quietly. She found herself wanting to say something, to apologise for making him feel awkward earlier. She felt a little fuzzy, though. After a painfully awkward minute they spoke together.

"Hey, about earl-"

"I'm sorry about-"

They both stopped short, waiting for the other to finish.

"Oh, sorry, you-"

"You go fi-"

They fell silent again. Sam decided that if they ever wanted to leave this kitchen, someone was just going to have to barrel through.

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, earlier."

"Wait, what?" He looked genuinely confused at her apology. She had never hated the idea of talking more.

"With the… the game. You left, you seemed like you-" Really needed to go? Really needed the bathroom? Really wanted to forget it had ever happened?

"Uh… no. You didn't make me uncomfortable. I was going to apologise for leaving, it was kinda rude…" He shuffled his feet a little.

"Kinda?" She smiled.

"Kinda very." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I just got a bit carried away. You're… well, you're… it was good. It was great. You're great. It's just that I'm a lot older than you, we've only just met – hell, I don't even know your name – and I haven't played spin the bottle in twenty four years…" Crap, that had dated him. Now she was going to think he was a lecherous creep and _why _did he have to open his damn mouth-

"Sam." He looked up and she was smiling at him a little funny. Like he amused her. He could work with that.

"Doesn't have quite the same ring as Tinkerbell." He smiled teasingly. He knew he was still stupid drunk, and she was far from sober. She was looking over at him like she was thinking something over, the cogs whirring in her brain.

"Yeah, well – you said you didn't know my name." She shuffled a little closer. "That you felt embarrassed because we'd only just met." She paused for a second before continuing. "You know my name now. You don't have to be embarrassed."

And Jack barely had time to catch his breath before she reached up and kissed him, his mouth opening freely and her body sliding up against his as he was backed into the counter. She was pressed against his chest, one hand threaded through his hair just like before and one hand sliding from his back down to cup his ass and pull him to her, and _oh _he has never been so happy to learn a woman's name because he breathes her in and in his mind he calls out _Sam Sam Sam Sam_


	4. Chapter 4

**Again, sorry for any grammar mistakes in this or any other part of this story. My attention span has been way too short lately. I promise I'll find a beta next time :)**

four

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><p>The next time Janet saw Jack he had a face covered in glitter and he was wearing Sam's wings.<p>

"Jack?" She stopped him with a hand on his arm. His cap was mysteriously missing, and he had a Dixie cup in each hand. "Are those Sam's?"

"Shhh…" Jack went to put a finger to his lips and nearly spilt drink down himself. "They're Tinkerbell's." He giggled then shook his head, his brow creasing in a frown as he reigned in his smile. "Secret. Secret wings. Magical." He whispered to Janet, as if immensely proud of himself.

"Oh my God." When he'd said he needed a drink, he'd certainly had one. Or four, she guessed. He was either ridiculously drunk, or ridiculous when drunk. Janet suspected it was a combination of the two. Although, given whose wings he was wearing and the glitter covering his face and neck, she figured Sam had something to do with why Jack was suddenly so giddyhappydrunk.

"Sh Janet! _Secret _wings! _Secret _Magic. Can't tell anyone." He shook his head back and forth then ran away. Janet didn't think she'd ever seen Jack O'Neill run anywhere except on the treadmill at the Academy Hospital, and certainly not dressed like this. _My my._

* * *

><p>"Tinkerbell! Psst!" Jack stuck his head around the back door, relieved to find her still sitting on the garden bench. She was cross legged on the end, looking at the stars, his cap still perched on her head where he had left it. He sat down across from her, drawing his legs under his body so he mirrored her, and put their drinks down between them. "Here. Water." She looked down, surprised. "Even fairies need to stay hydrated, Tinkerbell." He told her seriously. She giggled and kissed him on the cheek, then drank greedily, soon finishing the cup. She sighed and looked back up at the stars.<p>

"You're very pretty." Jack said solemnly, his drink forgotten. Her eyes were big and wide, her lips pink from his kisses, and her skin a little flushed from the cold. She looked right at him, considering him carefully.

"You're very pretty too." She replied.

"You think so?" He preened a little.

"Yeah. Very pretty. Really pretty. You've got good eyes." Warm and chocolaty and brown. Eyes made for laughing.

"Hmm. You've got good eyes, too. Pretty." And nice eyelashes, but he thought it would be weird if someone complimented your eyelashes, so he didn't. "You're very pretty. Like _really _pretty." He felt like he should look away but his brain wasn't getting the message to his muscles.

"Jack." She dropped the plastic cup at her feet.

"What?" She leaned in a little closer.

"Shh." She put a finger to his lips then drew it across his cheek until she reached his ear, tugging a little and he almost fell into her lap, but her hands caught his shoulders and their lips met instead. Jack thought somewhere distantly in his brain that it was messy and not very smooth but with a sigh his arms wrapped around her because she tasted like apples and he just didn't care. She hummed against him and moved a little closer, but soon broke away to yawn, covering her mouth with the back of her hand. "Sorry." She grinned.

"That's ok. I'm beat." He smiled sleepily, eyelids drooping a little at the contagious sound of her yawn. He pulled his legs out from under him and swung them over the edge of the bench, leaning back. To his surprise, she just twisted and leaned into him, her head falling onto his shoulder. The plastic feather in his cap was scratching against his cheek but he daren't move in case she lifted her head.

"Did you guys drive here?" Her head was a little foggy and she was tired but she really didn't want to have to leave him. She quickly quelled that thought. That was not a thought she should be thinking about someone she'd only just met.

"Yeah, but Janet said we could crash on her couch if we needed to." Whether there was space left for him he didn't know, because by the looks of everyone else who was still around, there were going to be quite a few spaces on the couch taken up.

"Oh." She sounded a little crestfallen. "I was kinda hoping you'd come bunk with me. I'm in Janet's spare room." She was close to just napping out on the bench outside, but it was already getting cold and she remembered how soft the comforter had felt when she had made the spare bed earlier.

"Uh…" Hell, was she asking him to share a bed with her? That was _so _not a good idea. She seemed to realise what that had sounded like, and sat up to clarify quickly, her cheeks tinged pink.

"Not to… you know. It's just that Janet only has so many couches, and you're comfy." Her grin was sheepish, and Jack withheld the urge to talk about how pretty she was again.

* * *

><p>They took the stairs one at a time, Sam supporting him as he stumbled into the banister a few times, and then they were upstairs and she pulled him down the corridor into what was presumably the spare room. A duffle sat on the bed and Sam knocked it onto the floor, flopping down gracelessly and crawling up towards the pillows. She looked so comfortable that he resisted the urge to stammer awkwardly and just set himself down on the other side, trying not to take up too much space. As soon as his head hit the pillow he let out a long yawn, suddenly realising just how tired he felt.<p>

"Just gonna lay down here for a bit, OK Tink?"

"Mmmhmmm." She mumbled. "'S Fine." She shuffled over and curled into him, and his arms came up around her instinctively, patting her on the head awkwardly. She had lost the cap somewhere between the garden and the bedroom, because his hand hit soft hair and just decided to take up residence resting on the back of her skull. For a moment he tried not to breathe in case he disturbed her, but the moment he inhaled his nose was filled with her, still smelling of apples and he caught a whiff of strawberry shampoo. He was going to say something, something about Daniel and going home, but he was so _cozy _and she was so warm that he just closed his eyes and drifted off.


End file.
